National Pro Bono Week: Celebrating Fenwick Attorneys’ Outstanding Pro Bono Efforts

By: Emily Gische, Associate, San Francisco

From Monday, October 20, 2014 through Friday, October 24, 2014, Fenwick celebrated the American Bar Association’s National Pro Bono Week. This annual celebration focuses the nation’s attention on the increased need for pro bono services and celebrates the outstanding work of lawyers who volunteer their services throughout the year.

The Fenwick spin on Pro Bono Week began with a Monday kick-off breakfast, followed by a panel of attorneys on Tuesday sharing what they’ve learned about client service through their pro bono work. The panelists – from various practice groups – shared their experiences working on a broad range of matters, from prisoners’ rights cases, to corporate and intellectual property counseling, to rule of law initiatives overseas. Another panel of firm attorneys spoke on Wednesday about their diverse pro bono projects, covering both transactional and litigation work. That same day, Fenwick participated in a Share of Cost Clinic in Redwood Shores, helping low-income and disabled seniors qualify for affordable health care coverage.

On Thursday, litigators from Fenwick’s Seattle office discussed their pro bono case Jafar v. Webb, in which the Washington Supreme Court established that indigent litigants are entitled to a waiver of all court fees and charges, helping to ensure equal access to justice. That afternoon, Fenwick hosted a pro bono happy hour to celebrate all of the firm’s pro bono efforts during the prior twelve months. The week concluded with a guest presentation on the growing field of animal law by an attorney from the Animal Legal Defense Fund, followed by a presentation on volunteer opportunities by the Humane Society Silicon Valley.

Many thanks go to Fenwick’s Pro Bono Team for planning such a wonderful week of programming to celebrate all the excellent work that the firm does for its pro bono clients and for various communities around the country!

Emily Gische, a UC Hastings College of the Law alum, is an associate in the Intellectual Property practice group at Fenwick & West LLP. Emily focuses her practice on a broad variety of trademark matters to support clients in the high technology and life sciences industries. While attending law school, Emily was the Executive Articles Editor of the Hastings Law Journal. She competed in the Saul Lefkowitz Moot Court Competition, focused on trademark and unfair competition law, in which her team won the Dolores K. Hanna National Best Brief Award. She also served as a Judicial Extern to The Honorable Kathryn Werdegar of the Supreme Court of California and the Honorable James Larson of the United States District Court in the Northern District of California. In her free time, Emily enjoys lacrosse and road biking.